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"I don't think so," Ana said through chattering teeth, although at this point it seemed quite likely. When Nigel put his coat around her, she let out an audiable sigh and let the warmth of it sink into her cold bones. Somewhat wearily, she leaned forward slightly to rest her forehead on his chest.

"Um," she said after a moment, "is there a place we can have some privacy? I brought something for you, but I didn't bring enough for everyone." The last statement was said quickly and softly that no one might hear.

Lucas started gnawing on the cookie, hopping off of Jayde's hand and onto the kitchen counter. He looked rather happy as she did. And more cookies came! He was in his own little mousey heaven.

Julia giggled as she watched her pet mouse, then managed to snag a cookie of her own and plopped herself down at the table to eat, waiting patiently for her hot cocoa.

Chii leaned forward as the girl sat down and grabbed a cookie as well, munching on it.

Auburn eyes could only blink as Paine watched Chii eat the cookie. The creature always confused her so much. She had asked Aiko several times what exactly she ate, as she never ate much aside from the random sweets here and there, but never got an answer aside from 'you... really don't want to know.'

"I think those are perfect for today. M'lady would love all of it, I'm sure." Elysia smiled at Jayde. "To tell the truth, I think she's been watching some Christmas movies in secret..."

"Oh, yeah?" Shippou asked as he stood up. "I am, too! That's cool." So, yeah, it had to be okay, right? Mom could easily grab both him and Ortensia and leap up to the house, and she was only hanyou... so... if Corli was taiyoukai, this shouldn't be bad, right? He grabbed onto Corli's hand.

Ortensia was a little more hesitant, but as soon as she saw Shippou do it, she did it as well.

"Could have fooled me," Nigel responded with a lifted eyebrow before he heard Ana speak, then glanced around to make sure no one was watching before kissing the top of her head. "C'mon."

He lead her to the rooftop, where no one else was. Usually, Dav was here, but the dragon had already fallen fast asleep in the snow below.

"... so, you got me something?" he questioned, looking a little confused. "I... didn't even know there was going to be a Christmas today, so..." He trailed off and fidgeted a little, an almost un-Nigel reaction. Ana was possibly the only person who could elicit a response such as this out of him.

"Oh, I've got the perfect movie!" Jayde exclaimed, setting the cookies down in the middle of the table so everyone would be able to reach them. Those that lived with her regularly let out a collective sigh, for it was easy enough to know what it would be. Shortly after, she returned with "White Christmas" under her arm.

"What do you think?" Those that were inside thought better of saying that they'd all seen the movie fifty times, knowing that Jayde had seen it many more and didn't have a problem with it.

Outside, Corli was still grinning.

"Alright!" he said, flapping his little wings with all his might. His brow furrowed slightly, but after a moment of feirce concentration, the three of them were off the ground, their hands in his.

Though staggering slightly under the weight, the ice demon flapped his way up instead of taking the stairs, and he was quiet proud of himself. Just wait until he told Vati and ma...Ms. Aiko.

((**just realized that Lyra somehow dissapeard'd**))

"I'd love some...cocoa." He sent her a wicked grin that said that perhaps it wasn't chocolate that he was talking about. However, his wicked train of thought was disrupted when he heard the commotion from around Aiko and himself.

When he turned to look, he momentairily forgot that he wasn't supposed to swear in front of the children.

"Oh, s**t," he said, eyes glued to the three that were currently making their loopy, zig-zaggy way up to the top of the stairs. Hell, it was like watching Zinnia walking horizontally only...vertical.

Corli was elated, no matter how erratic his flight path was. Huffing and puffing, he finally made it to the top of the stairs, setting them all down as gently as he could.

Note, as gently as he could. Which basically amounted into them piling into a squealing, giggling heap at the top of the stairs.

Just inside, Jayde decided that she really, really liked Elysia. "It's no trouble at all," she told her with a grin. "I--" Thud. Head snapping over to face the door, Jayde blinked. "What was that?"

Aiko caught his grin and smirked a little, herself, chuckling lightly and leaning in to kiss his cheek...

... when she saw two of her children and one of Lyra's wobbling to stay in air, and what little color she had left in her cheeks quickly dissapeared.

Giggling heap, indeed. Shippou quickly dissolved into laughter as he rolled back and forth on his back, looking rather odd as he did, since his tail served as a road bump of sorts.

Ortensia, while she didn't make any noise, was laying on her back as well with her red eyes closed and into half circles. Obviously, the Karrot was smiling.

Elysia glided over to the door and looked outside, down at the heap of children there.

"What on Earth are you three doing?" she asked, unable not to smile at the giggling children.

A camera. Nigel blinked as he pulled out his present and held it high in one hand, examining it. He didn't say anything as he set the box down on the roof of the treehouse and looked through it down at the family members below, fiddling with the lens to bring things into focus.

"This is... wonderful," he said as he turned toward Ana, looking at her through his new present. He brought it back down and used his free hand to circle around her and hold her in an embrace. "Thank you."

In a movement much smoother, Lyra firmly secured his arms around Aiko's waist, holding her tightly.

"Going up," he said in a no-nonsense tone of voice. He needed to be upstairs to make sure that they were all alright, and he needed it right now. Though Elisia's smile and the children's laughter should be proof enough, he wanted to see for himself.

So with a pop, his wings emerged from his back, and with a couple of quick beats he was up at the top of the stairs. He'd had a little more practice at this than Corli had.

Jayde hastily set the cookies down, hoping that the little mouse would be pleased with the one he held for the time being. When she stepped outside and saw that the three randomly flying children (and carrot) had landed safely, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Now, Lyra," she said up on seeing his hasty approach and sour expression, "they made it up safely, didn't they?"

"We sure did wasn't that cool?" Corli all but squealed, beaming up at Elysia. He, too, was giggling, and was kept from talking in longwinded, pointless paragraphs by his panting for breath. Though it seemed like it should in the show, it didn't fog in front of his face as it did those around him.

((that sounds fine. You want me to post back to this first or just have you post...something...from elysia? Or just have Jayde look out the window and go, "I wish the other house was done"? ))